Hey,
My head gaskett blew on my Rover 25, its only 2 years old with 13000 miles on clock i know nothing really.
Anyway for a new head gasket and the silver thing skimmed and a full service i have been quoted £450 is this good or am i being ripped off.........
|
It's very difficult to give an accurate estimate as the full extent of the damage won't be known until the cylinder head has been removed.
By the way, 13,000 miles is quite high mileage for head gasket failure on a Rover. I went to one once which had overheated and suffered damage with 96 miles on the clock.
|
Roughly would you say this is about right or Not.......
And if mine had died at 96 miles i would of cried............
|
|
I would think a figure of £450 is pretty much to be expected I'm afraid.
|
|
|
I would have thought it would depend on how long the car had been standing before you bought it.Don`t quote me on it,but it has been said anti freeze starts breaking down at around 18k.Or 18 months,it is supposed to be changed at two year intervals.Inc time standing,so it is possible it stood for a while before you bought it?.Problem with so called H/G failure and overheating is head may be cracked/bowed,so as mentioned it is not possible to say what the damage is without stripdown and testing of cylinder head
--
Steve
|
To be honest I don't think his problem is antifreeze - its the design of the engine.
£450 is a pretty good price. Local Rover dealer charges about £750 for this job if no consequential damage.
It obviously essential that they pressure test the head before refitting.
BTW, in my experience once they've gone they tend to go again in about 10-20k miles. Best off getting it fixed and p/xing for a nice low-mileage Nissan Almera.....
|
I forget the times I mentioned anti freeze but agree with you, No complaints with the price Aprilia.But from what I gather the thermostat positioning is the culprit along with poor machining of the Cylinder head waterways.Times that has been mentioned,though not here.
--
Steve
|
imo £450 is too cheap.
Why?
Because to do the job properly, you should get the head skimmed to ensure it does not happen again.
If you don't get that doen, you'll be spending another £600 to have it done properly in under 10,000 miles.
madf
|
>>imo £450 is too cheap.
>>Why?
>>Because to do the job properly, you should get the head skimmed >>to ensure it does not happen again.
>>If you don't get that doen, you'll be spending another £600 to >>have it done properly in under 10,000 miles.
also, in cutting corners they may re-use, rather than replace, the stretch bolts.
|
A agree, it's suspiciously cheap if it also includes a service.
I thought the HGF problems with the K were solved. Hope so, as I fancy a MGF.
|
My friend has just purchased a 03 1.4 IE with 10k on it - genuine one owner its absolute mint.
I havent touched rovers since he das of the 213 - and that was a brilliant honda engine!
what advice can I give him to prevent the head gasket going?
any other problems which can be avoided on these cars?
He paid 3 grand for it - which isnt to bad for a car of its age and its mileage- and it is like new.
|
Sorry, but wouldn't touch a K-series. The later ones still give trouble, despite what the company and Rover fans may say.
To give it the best chance you need to regularly (every two years) change the coolant and keep a close eye on the level. Any drop in level should be investigated directly, and the car not driven.
|
to answer the original post, £450 does seem a little on the cheap side, however if you are replacing the headgasket its normal practice to do the cambelt, plugs and obviously oil and filters so would make sure they are in the price...if they are not then £450 would be about right...cheapest round my area is £270 with cam belt (mate had it done about 18 months ago and 30K and is still ok)
>>what advice can I give him to prevent the head gasket going?
Personally think its the luck of the draw however a FSH is a must. Mine has now done 110k with 2 head gaskets, however second was my fault as the radiator was leaking for ages before it gave way on A1 big syle. One guy at work has old shape 214 with 175K on the clock and still on original head gasket!
|
>>Personally think its the luck of the draw however a FSH is a must.
Tend to agree,though even then its no guarantee it wont happen.And even head skim/replacement gasket will not say its fixed for life!
--
Steve
|
|
|
|
|
I would say this is about right. My Sis in Law has just had her 200 1.6 done for £460. This was at an indy garage the family has been using for donkeys - so we know them and they know us. the machining was done at a local shop that I used to use when I was building engines myself. We are confident the work was top notch.
The price included a new belt, oil, filter, sparks and head bolts.
This was in Coventry.
|
|
|
Hey, My head gaskett blew on my Rover 25, its only 2 years old with 13000 miles on clock i know nothing really.
Isnt it still under warranty? thought these were covered for 3 years.
|
You live on the moon, Reevsie?
MG Rover went out of business about 8 weeks or so ago!!!! Their warranties aren't worth the paper they're written on anymore.
|
While we're on the subject of Rover head-gaskets, how long could you run a car once it's gone?
Until the MOT runs out in a few months time, perhaps?
Or is the car likely to break down and leave you stranded?
|
>>how long could you run a car once it's gone?
Not advisable to run at all untill repaired!
--
Steve
|
Not advisable to run at all untill repaired!
Yes - but what if the car is going to be scrapped in a few months time?
Would a defective head gasket lead to sudden (and dangerous?) engine failure or would it just fail to start one morning?
|
From experience K series engines, if you are lucky, will give you warning by suddenly starting to consume coolant. More often than not though they fail catastrophically and spectacularly. If you suspect the "gasket" is going, continue at your peril bearing in mind the consequences of sudden failure to other road users.
Andrew
--
Simplicate and add lightness!!
|
|
|
|
While we're on the subject of Rover head-gaskets, how long could you run a car once it's gone? Until the MOT runs out in a few months time, perhaps? Or is the car likely to break down and leave you stranded?
This won't help the OP, but I chuckle at how naive I was:
Many years ago, i had a Vauxhall Chevette, complete with 120,000 miles and large rust holes in the wings.
I was young and busy, and didn't appreciate that the car was trying to tell me something with the 10 minutes it took to start the car in the morning and having to fill up the cooling system with water every day. I thought that it was a leak somewhere, simple as that.
Anyway I was given a company Fiesta (shudder) and sold the Chevette for £195. The advert was simple, 6 months tax and MOT, stereo and sunroof. Purchaser inspected the car at night, and came back with the cash next day, despite it having mud up to the door handles. I did him that it had a leak somewhere in the engine.
Some years later, i had a Nissan Sunny which suffered HGF. Spotted it, took it to garage and got it fixed eventually. I then realised that the Chevette's head gasket had failed THREE MONTHS before I had sold it. My daily commute was at the time say 70 mile round trip.
So the short answer (sorry for the ramble) that I can offer is three months and c.4,000 miles. It still did 35mpg too!
Ignorance can be bliss.
|
Thanks for that. About a month ago I didn't fully tighten the filler cap and my engine overheated.
It still drives nicely but I've now noticed a few spots of brown gunge floating on top of the coolant.
I'll just keep an eye on the level (and the temperature gauge) in the mean time.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Oh yeah, D'oh!
|
As long as it starts and runs, buy an AA membership and keep running till it drops is my advice. AA can tow you home via the scrapyard...
madf
|
|
|
|
|
|
